Apr 1, 2020

Yes, you have been a kid, but you've never been a kid at this time in history.

Today's kids live in an entirely different world than when you and I were kids.

And here is something else to understand. If you want to reach and impact today's kids, you have to enter their world. Just as a missionary enters the world of the culture they are trying to reach, so we must enter the world of today's kids.

For a little help with that, here are some facts about today's kids that will give you a glimpse into their world.

They have never heard the screeching of dial-up internet trying to connect.

Cartoons and kids shows have always been available 24/7 with on demand and a host of channels dedicated solely for kids.

Thanks to Google, they've always had an answer for everything in less than 3 minutes.

They have never had to "be kind and rewind."

They've always been able to watch movies without leaving their house.

They've always been able to use mobile devices for entertainment.

They can see all of their baby and growing up pictures in one place - Facebook.

Eating meals together at the dinner table doesn't happen each night of the week due to busy schedules, sports and more.

Thanks to technology, today's kids have always been able to stay in touch with their parents at all times.

Cyber-bullying wasn't as much of an issue, since many of the apps that kids use to bully didn't exist back then.

Today's kids spend less time playing outdoors. It's much more common to see a child playing video games instead of riding their bicycle.

Many kids have less "chores" than previous generations. This can stifle their sense of independence as they grow up into adulthood. And this lack of independence can impact kids as they get
older, especially when they transition to adulthood and have to take
care of themselves.

Cursing. Dropping an "F-bomb"is considered an every day word and today's kids think nothing of using it.

Today's kids have never inserted a VHS tape into a VCR to watch a movie or to record something.

Reality TV has always had programs.

What are phone books?

Not knowing what your friends are doing every moment.

Waiting for hours for something to download.

Sending film away to be processed.

Answering machines.

Pay phones.

Vacuum cleaners with bags in them.

Waiting for a 5-minute sport's update on the news so you can see how your favorite team did.

Writing a check.

Libraries as a place to get books rather than a place to use the internet.

Folding up a paper map.

Floppy disks weren't just the save icon on your computer.

Home phone lines.

Rolodex's.

Pagers.

Walkmans.

Slamming down a phone during an argument.

The happiness when a movie rental store is out of a new release but then finds you one in the returns.

Having to wait for a Net Flix dvd you rented to come in the mail.

Car windows that you roll up.

The feeling of not knowing the answer to a question because you can’t ask Siri or look it up.